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Following the government’s decision to bar households with piped natural gas (PNG) connections from retaining or obtaining subsidised domestic LPG, around 6,000 PNG users have surrendered their LPG connections as of March 28. Petroleum and Natural Gas Secretary Neeraj Mittal, speaking on Sunday, thanked those who have given up their LPG connections and urged more PNG consumers to follow suit so cylinders can be made available to households without piped gas access. “Join this strong group of do-good citizens who have come forward to give up LPG to help those who don’t have PNG. Give up yours today,” Mittal said in a post on X. On March 14, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas amended the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (Regulation of Supply and Distribution) Order, 2000, under the Essential Commodities Act. The revised rules make it mandatory for households with PNG connections to surrender their domestic LPG connections.— neerajmittalias (@neerajmittalias) The order also bars government oil companies and their distributors from issuing new LPG connections or refilling cylinders for consumers who already have PNG supply. It states that such consumers must immediately surrender their LPG connections and cannot apply for new ones. The move aims to prioritise LPG availability for households that do not have access to piped gas. India imports about 88% of its crude oil, 50% of its natural gas and 60% of its LPG requirements. Before the recent escalation involving US-Israel strikes on Iran and Tehran’s retaliation, a significant share of these imports came from West Asia, including countries such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The ongoing conflict has disrupted supplies due to a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a key transit route for Gulf energy exports. While India has partly offset crude disruptions by sourcing oil from countries like Russia, gas supplies to industrial users have been curtailed and LPG availability for commercial establishments has been reduced. In response, gas allocation has been prioritised for households and transport, with full supply to PNG and CNG users. Industrial and commercial consumers are receiving around 80% of their usual supply, while fertiliser plants are operating at 70–75% capacity, with additional LNG cargoes being arranged. The government has also accelerated the expansion of city gas distribution networks by easing approvals and promoting a shift from LPG to PNG. More than 2.9 lakh new PNG connections were added in March alone. Companies such as Indraprastha Gas, Mahanagar Gas, GAIL Gas and BPCL are offering incentives to encourage PNG adoption. Despite geopolitical disruptions, LPG deliveries remain stable, with no reported shortages. Daily refill deliveries have crossed 55 lakh cylinders, and measures to curb diversion have been tightened. Commercial LPG supply has been restored to around 70% of pre-crisis levels, with priority given to hospitality, food services and key industries. To manage supply, the government has increased kerosene allocations to states and intensified action against hoarding and black marketing, conducting around 2,900 raids and seizing nearly 1,000 cylinders in recent days. States have been directed to enhance monitoring, hold daily briefings, counter misinformation and fast-track approvals for gas infrastructure. The government has also urged the public not to believe rumours. Consumers in areas with PNG access, including those in rented homes, will be required to transition, with officials treating gas as a basic utility similar to electricity and water. Around 60 lakh consumers are estimated to be eligible for the shift, with about 2.2 lakh already having moved from LPG to PNG in recent days. The government is targeting 12.6 crore PNG connections by 2032 as part of its push to expand city gas distribution networks.

Seoul: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observed a test of an upgraded solid-fuel engine for weapons capable of targeting the U.S. mainland, and called it as a significant development boosting his country's strategic military arsenal, state media reported Sunday.Also Read: North Korea's Kim Jong Un inspects solid-fuel rocket engine, new battle tank as Pyongyang steps up military developmentWhile the test was in line with Kim's stated goal of acquiring more agile, hard-to-detect missiles targeting the U.S. and its allies, some experts speculate North Korea's claim may be an exaggeration. Missiles with built-in solid propellants are easier to move and conceal their launches than liquid-fuel weapons, which in general must be fueled before liftoffs and cannot last long.The official Korean Central News Agency reported Kim watched the ground jet test of the engine using a composite carbon fiber material. It said the engine's maximum thrust is 2,500 kilonewtons, up from about 1,970 kilonewtons reported in a similar solid-fuel engine test in September.KCNA reported the test was conducted as part of the country's five-year arms build-up meant to upgrade "strategic strike means," a term referring to nuclear-capable ballistic missiles and other weapons. Kim said the latest engine test had "great significance in putting the country's strategic military muscle on the highest level," according to KCNA. The agency did not say when or where the test occurred.North Korea's report on the latest test could be "bluffing" as it didn't disclose some key information like the engine's total combustion time, said Lee Choon Geun, an honorary research fellow at South Korea's Science and Technology Policy Institute.When North Korea reported about the previous engine test in September, it described it as the ninth and final ground test of a solid-fuel engine that it earlier said would be used for intercontinental ballistic missiles. Observers predicted at the time North Korea would soon test-launch an ICBM loaded with that engine, but it hasn't done so yet.Also Read: China is rebuilding its grip on North Korea. Is Kim Jong Un ready to oblige?North Korea's solid-fuel engine program may be facing some delays or the country might have determined to develop a better engine, possibly with Russian assistance, Lee said. Cooperation between the countries has deepened in recent years, with the North sending troops and conventional weapons to support Russia's war against Ukraine. In recent years, North Korea has test-fired a variety of ICBMs demonstrating the potential range to reach the U.S. mainland, including solid-fuel ones. But some of North Korea's past claims about major weapons tests drew outside skepticism. In 2024, North Korea claimed to have successfully test-launched a multiwarhead missile, but South Korea quickly dismissed it s a deception to cover up a failed launch.Some foreign experts say North Korea still faces technological hurdles before it has a functioning ICBM, such as ensuring its warheads survive the harsh conditions of atmospheric reentry. But others dispute that assessment given the number of years the country has spent on its nuclear and missile programs. Possession of more powerful and efficient solid-fuel engines would allow North Korea to build smaller ICBMs that can be launched from submarines or land-based mobile launch trucks, Lee said. Other observers say a push to increase the engine power is likely associated with efforts to place multiple warheads on a single missile to increase chances of defeating U.S. defenses.North Korea has pushed hard to expand its nuclear arsenal since Kim's high-stakes diplomacy with U.S. President Donald Trump collapsed in 2019. In a ruling Workers' Party congress in February, Kim left open the door for dialogue with Trump but urged Washington to drop demands for the North's nuclear disarmament as a precondition for talks.

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has dismissed BSE’s appeals against NCLT’s order to defreeze the demat accounts of businesses undergoing insolvency resolution and liquidation process.The case pertained to two companies - Future Corporate Resources and Liz Traders and Agents. BSE froze their demat accounts as these companies, which are undergoing an insolvency process, allegedly failed to pay the annual listing fee to the stock exchange, among others.The resolution professionals assigned for both companies approached NCLT, as they planned to sell shares held in the companies to recover money. The Mumbai-bench of NCLT in October 2025 and July 2024 passed two separate orders, directing BSE to take back the freeze on the accounts.BSE subsequently moved to NCLAT and filed two separate appeals against the orders. The stock exchange challenged the power of the NCLT to defreeze the demat accounts of businesses undergoing insolvency resolution and the liquidation process.Passing a common order on the two petitions by BSE, a two-member NCLAT bench said that NCLT has the jurisdiction under section 60 (5) of the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code (IBC) to entertain applications for defreezing of the Demat accounts during insolvency and pass a direction also."The fate of these appeals was dependent on the issue as to whether NCLT was having jurisdiction under Section 60 of the IBC to pass impugned orders, we do not find it relevant to discuss this aspect of the matter at length, as we have already held that NCLT was having jurisdiction under section 60 (5) of the Code to entertain such applications and the impugned orders have been passed in valid exercise of such jurisdiction," the NCLAT said.The appellate tribunal noted that the ownership of the companies regarding the shares held in those demat accounts has not been disputed. The NCLAT said accounts were frozen due to dues, which have become debt under the insolvency process. In that case, NCLT would have jurisdiction to deal with those dues (debt) under the IBC framework, as they are connected to the insolvency of those companies, it explained.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

Jio Financial Services (JFS) is hoping to start general and life insurance businesses this year, a top company official has said.The financial services company does not have any immediate plan to get into the unsecured and consumer durable lending businesses."We hope to start insurance manufacturing in 2026, subject to regulatory approvals," its chief executive and managing director Hitesh Sethia told PTI recently.The company, which recently entered the reinsurance business, along with its equal joint venture associate Allianz, will partner with the French company for general and life insurance businesses as well.Sethia said in parallel, the company is working towards building the necessary teams for the insurance foray.JFS, which is promoted by entities linked to the richest Indian Mukesh Ambani, has entered lending businesses, like assisting home buyers, asset management, wealth management and reinsurance, either by itself or through partnerships.Explaining its strategy in the lending business, Sethia said JFS also has its own boundaries based on risk and capital, and at present, it is concentrating on serving secured lending products to prime or near-prime customers.Given this strategy, it has a presence in about 20 cities, which offer the best of customers in the segments.Sethia pointed to a higher incidence of non-performing loans in the consumer durable and unsecured categories, and added that the same in home loans is a fraction of it.When asked about plans on unsecured lending and consumer finance, Sethia hinted that there are no immediate plans and increasing the profitability will be the focus for now."As our NBFC's business and profitability grow in line with our current risk appetite, and we learn more about our customers and the business, we will, at the appropriate time, evaluate exploring newer lending solutions at different levels of the risk spectrum," he said.The company is already distributing third-party unsecured lending products, including personal loans and credit cards, through its agentic neural marketplace on the Jiofinance App.When asked about the newly expanded offerings on the app, Sethia said that it is showing very good traction, with users owing to the hyper-personalised nature of the offerings and the new conversational user interface.